Best Laid Plans
by PerfectlyLoudBouquet2
Summary: Arthie wants to tell Yolanda she loves her. And she knows exactly how to do it.
1. The Before

Upon reflection, Arthie realized a good portion of her brain was taken up by thoughts of Yolanda. It was a wonder she didn't get called out for being distracted more often. At any given moment, she could be caught thinking about Yolanda's cute smile that made her heart race or her thoughtful actions that made her blush or her warm kisses that made her melt.

Whenever they'd see each other, Yolanda would give her hand a quick squeeze or shoot Arthie a wink as she passed by. During the longer moments they'd share, Yolanda would hold her as if she was worried their time was painfully limited. (Yolanda was surprisingly clingy, which suited Arthie just fine.) Of course, every time Arthie would wake up and see Yolanda's beautiful body lying beside her, hair pressed against the pillow, hand slightly curled, Arthie would wonder how in the world she got to be so lucky. Every time she saw Yolanda, her heart would flutter and she could feel those three words tapping at the inside of her mouth, begging to be let out. But the moment never seemed right.

It wasn't that she had any doubt. Ever since Sam had called out the feelings she hadn't realized she'd had (leading to an entire night of internal exploration), she'd known he was right. She was in love with Yolanda.

So, with that in mind, she planned the perfect date to say I love you.

"Hey, Yolanda," Arthie said, approaching her after practice.

"Hey, babe." Yolanda hefted her bag over her shoulder and leaned in for a quick kiss. The kiss was brief, but it still caused Arthie's heart to skip a beat. Her proposal was on the tip of her tongue, but before she could say anything, Yolanda said, "Rhonda wants me to get food with her, but I'll see you back at the room in like an hour, okay?"

To hide her disappointment, Arthie joked, "I don't know if I can wait that long."

Yolanda grinned, taking Arthie's hands.

"Well, I'll try to be quick." She leaned in for another kiss, this time longer. Before it could deepen, Yolanda pulled back, though very reluctantly. She opened her eyes and looked at Arthie with warmth and affection.

"See you," Arthie said, stepping back and letting their hands part.

"Love you."

"Love you."

Both women froze. Yolanda had already turned to go, but she slowly turned back, eyes wide.

"Any chance you didn't hear me say that?"

"Well, I repeated it back, so no, sorry."

She cursed. "I had a plan for this and everything."

Arthie's heart lifted. "You did?"

"Yolanda!"

The pair turned to see Rhonda standing at the entrance of the ballroom. Arthie waved and Rhonda waved back.

"You can kiss your girlfriend later! I'm hungry!"

Yolanda pointed at Arthie. "We'll talk later."

"Okay."

Yolanda still looked extremely embarrassed, but she smiled before running off to leave with Rhonda. Arthie watched her go, heart bursting. When Yolanda came back, she would be ready.


	2. The After

Yolanda rushed into their shared apartment suite.

"I'm so sorry!" She dropped her bag at the door before realizing she was crushing rose petals. She knelt down to see them better. "No way."

Straightening up, she followed the rose petal trail the four feet into the apartment until she reached the foot of the bed. The room was dimly lit with clusters of candles at every corner. The air smelled vaguely of perfume (and lit candles). Arthie was lying seductively on the bed in her sexiest clothing.

"Hey, babe."

"Hey," Yolanda said, grinning. "You've been busy."

"I had plans too. For . . . you know. The I love you conversation."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." Arthie looked down, suddenly embarrassed. "And I do. Just to clarify."

"You do?" Yolanda sat down on the bed and Arthie moved to give her room.

"Yeah." She met Yolanda's eyes. "I love you."

Yolanda took her hand and intertwined their fingers. "I love you too."

Arthie gave Yolanda a wide, genuine smile. "Really?"

Yolanda returned the expression, heart alight. She promised herself she would do her best to make Arthie smile like that every day. "Really."

She used her other hand to push some of Arthie's hair behind her ear. Cupping her cheek, she leaned forward and kissed her girl. Gently, she used her weight to push Arthie backwards. The pair made out for a bit, lost in each other, both feeling beyond lucky that the other one was in their life.

After some time, Yolanda pulled back and put her head on Arthie's chest. Arthie curled into more of a cuddling position and the pair wrapped their arms around each other.

"How long?" Arthie asked. Her voice was quiet, but Yolanda could hear it deep in her chest.

"How long what?"

"How long did you know?"

She thought about it. "When we danced at the wrap party for the pilot."

"That long ago?" Arthie sounded astonished.

"Well, yeah. Have you seen you?" Yolanda grinned when Arthie made a 'psh' noise. "I'd thought you were cute before, but that was the first time I really saw you. Later, when I looked back, that was the moment I kept coming back to."

"Wow. I had no idea."

"Of course, our dance for the show was the first time I thought you might reciprocate."

"So what'd you do in between?"

"Pined." Yolanda's head bounced when Arthie laughed. "I did!"

"I can't believe you pined over me."

"I refer you to my first point: have you seen you?"

Arthie squeezed Yolanda to express everything she couldn't say. Yolanda squeezed her back. The pair laid in silence for a while.

"I love you," Arthie said. Flat, like it was a statement of fact.

"I love you too."

"I love you."

Yolanda smiled. "I love you too."

"I can say that now."

"You can."

"And it'll always be true."

The sincerity of her statement, as well as their full conversation and the rose petals and the candles and whatever else Arthie'd had planned, all hit Yolanda at once and she felt herself tearing up. She tried to hide it, but when she sniffled, she felt Arthie stiffen.

"Are you crying? I'm sorry. I can pull back."

"No! No, you're perfect. I love you."

"I love you too."

Yolanda wiped her eyes. "I've never been wooed like this before."

"Never?" Arthie said, sounding horrified. Yolanda shook her head. "Well, it's a good thing I'm here then."

She pulled Arthie even closer to her and sighed contentedly. "Good thing."


End file.
